Saturday, February 9, 2008

It sounds like France is answering the call and plans to send well over half of the 1,000 troops and equipment called for by the Manley Report. MacKay has spent the last week shoring up support from NATO countries and claims to be making good progress.

Canada is continuing to press forward in its attempt to shore up NATO reinforcements for the combat effort in southern Afghanistan, Defence Minister Peter MacKay said Saturday.

A tired-looking Mr. MacKay was in Halifax for the provincial Conservatives' annual general meeting immediately after returning from Lithuania where he sought support at a meeting of NATO ministers.

Before a luncheon address, the Defence Minister said there had been diplomatic progress, but he didn't elaborate on whether that would result in the 1,000 troops for which Ottawa is looking.

...

France is hinting it might respond to the Canadian request for help in Afghanistan.

But French officials have already suggested they won't be able to provide the entire force of 1,000, and a decision either way likely wouldn't be made before April, as Canada would prefer.

Meanwhile, Mr. MacKay used his speech to launch a fresh attack against the opposition parties in the wake of Friday's confidence motion to extend Canada's combat role until February 2011 – two years past the current deadline.